224. They do not have the entire hadith but it is the hadith ofWaabisah.

6 lbn Muhammad, p. 165. His complete discussion (as relied upon here) is found on pp. 165-1 67. 7 Al-Hilaali, Eeqaadh, p. 375. Commentary on the Forty Hadith of al-Nawawi General Comments About the Hadith This is another important and comprehensive hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him), wherein he has explained the essence of righteousness and sinfulness. About the Narrator (I): al-Nawwaas ibn Samaan Al-Nawwaas ibn Samaan was a Companion of the Prophet (peace be upon him). He, accompanying his father, met the Prophet (peace be upon him) with a delegation of his people. He lived in Madinah for one year to learn from the Prophet (peace be upon him). He was one of the ahl al-Suffah (the poor Muslims who lived in the Prophet's mosque). In Sahih Muslim he is recorded to have said that the only thing that kept him from emigrating to Madinah was his need or want to ask the Prophet (peace be upon him) questions. Those who emigrated to Madinah did not ask the Prophet (peace be upon him) many questions due to the general disapproval of asking too many questions. Hence, only those who came from outside Madinah were free to put questions to the Prophet (peace be upon him). After the death of the Prophet (peace be upon him) he lived in Greater Syria. Seventeen hadith have been recorded on his authority. Muslim recorded three of them. About the Narrator (II): Waabisah ibn Mabad Waabisah ibn Mabad and visited the Prophet as part of a delegation in the year 9 A.H. He was well-known for his gentleness and his tendency to cry a great deal. Eleven hadith have been recorded on his authority. "Righteousness is good character." lbn Uthaimeen explains this portion of the hadith to mean that good character is one aspect of righteousness. 1 However, this does not seem to capture the essence of the Prophet's statement. It seems, instead, that the meaning of this phrase is similar to the meaning of the phrases discussed earlier, "The pilgrimage is Arafah," and "The religion is naseehah." The meaning here is, "The main or essential aspect of righteousness is good character. "2 As noted below, depending on how one understands the meaning of the word birr ("righteousness"), the hadith could be left in its literal sense. The 1 lbn Uthaimeen, Sharh Riyaadh, vol. 6, p. 1 83. 2 Cf., ibn Daqeeq al-Eid, Sharh, p. 72. Hadith #27: "Righteousness is Good Character .. " religion is truly and completely "good character" in the sense explained below.1 The Meaning of al-Birr ("Righteousness") The word birr is used in two senses. The first is treating others in a good fashion. In particular, one should treat one's parents in a good manner. This is known as birr al-waalidain. The word, though, is used in a more general sense to behave well toward anyone, not just one's parents. Sometimes the word birr is used in conjunction with the word taqwa. For example, Allah says in the Quran, ... -.:__s) a:1\j N1 Á i)jL;.Jj "Help you one another in al-birr and al-taqwa" (al-Maaidah 2). lbn Rajah states that in this verse al-birr refers to dealing with others while al-taqwa refers to dealing properly with Allah by obeying His commands.2 If this is the usage intended by Prophet (peace be upon him) in this particular statement, then the hadith must be understood to mean, "Good character is essential to righteous dealings with others." The second sense in which birr is used refers to all acts of worship and obedience to Allah, both inward and outward. This usage is found in the following verse of the Quran, ... ,., .... ., ,,,,., ... ...,., J. 0 - ,.,. ,,, J ,,,. ;:ii :_; Ɵ\ Âj yÃlj JϠI ύ Ѩ 1_,J'jJ ,) Ɵ\ ਲ਼ / .... ,,,.,,. 1 The importance of good character has been discussed in the commentary to Hadith Number 1 7. The attempt here will be to stress or discuss what was not discussed earlier. By now the reader has probably already noted how many or the hadith in this small collection are related to the behavior and character of a believer. This should not come as a surprise. In fact, ibn al-Qayyim once stated, "All of the religion is behavior and character (khuluq). What increases you in [good] behavior, increases you in your religion." See ibn al-Qayyim, Madaarij, vol. 2, p. 294. It is important to note that ibn al-Qayyim was referring to the wider concept of khuluq, as explained above in the commentary, and not the narrow concept that is commonly held, namely that khuluq is only considered one's behavior toward others. - 2 lbn Rajah, Jaami, vol. 2, p. 98. But then ibn Rajah said that it is possible that al-birr here means performing the obligatory deeds while.al-taqwa refers to staying away from the forbidden acts.